First impressions Ohlins Road & Track

Now that I've been living with these for a few days I thought I'd give some first impressions. First off what I've got is the Ohlins Road & Track kit for the 4th Gen Legacy GT. I opted for heavier than OTS rates because I do plan on doing some racing.

 

The old worn out suspension bump steered like it was no ones business, and while not harsh definitely left something to be desired in the ride quality department. This was probably due to worn out bushings and 1.5 blown shocks generally contributing to decreased driver satisfaction. Even given that on smooth surfaces it wasn't ungodly terrible, but road imperfections were not my friend.

 

Fast forward. The Ohlins on the other hand, are a treat, while they are stiffer than the factory suspension (go figure) the bump steer gone, and rough roads, while definitely still rough, are not jarring. On the OEM suspension you did get the occasional jarring bump from an unexpected pothole. The Ohlins have definitely increased the amount of "road feel" but not to the point of discomfort, my kidneys do not feel like they're being flung about inside my ribcage.

 

The car handles nice and flat when taking long sweepers and I feel like I'm being pressed into the bolster ... instead of dumped there by the angle of the body roll. Overall the car is much more predictable and feel much more confident in it as I come closer to the edges of the tires grip. I have not attempted to dial in the dampening yet as I haven't had enough time to really get a feel for how the car handles to see if there's any changes I would make.

 

I will say that in addition to the Ohlins I did get a pretty massive refresh of several other suspension components. Front control arm bushings were replaced with the SuperPro anti lift kit, this may have contributed greatly to the reduction in bump steer. Rear control arms were replaced with the whiteline adjustable ones, and the bushings in the third rear arm (not included in the whiteline kit) were replaced with whiteline bushings. A few various other bushings were replaced during this whole overhaul to tighten things up in general. The car feels solid all around, but not unbearable or even mildly uncomfortable.

 

Overall I am incredibly happy with my suspension choice, and am excited to see how far I can push it in it's current state.

After being on these for several months now, I am convinced of the DFV's magic. Certainly not a marketing gimmick.

 

These coils are the most comfortable I've ever ridden on, excluding stuff that costs north of $8-10K. While they are much firmer than my factory specB suspension, especially with rates stiffer than Ohlins specs, it's honestly more comfortable and handles road imperfections better than the stock Bilsteins on factory springs.

 

I went to these straight from RCE T1's with 500lb rates f/r, and while those were absolutely excellent, the Ohlins do outperform.

So far ... road characteristics get a big thumbs up. Unfortunately the pacific northwest is getting hammered rain ... and I have summer tires. So for the time being a "spirited drive" is going to have to wait. I have a fantastic road to go bomb down though.

 

"Track" impressions will have to wait until about March when autocross starts up again. Agreed on the DFV magic ... my last set of coilovers (granted the spring rates were about 100 lbs heavier on each corner) while the handled admirably when I got on it ... well ... lets just put it this way ... when I drove from Eugene to Vancouver my fitbit registered about 4k - 5k steps. I'm incredibly happy with the decision to "pay to play". Haven't taken it on any long drives yet, but I don't doubt it will be plenty comfortable when the time comes.

Where did you order them from and what are the spring rates that you have installed?

I'm considering a upgrade on my SpecB with pinks.

 

Thanks

Performance Shock, Inc. out of Sonoma. I'm running 550f/450r. If you're just looking for an upgrade the off the shelf rates might do it for you. The guys at PSi are super helpful and great to work with. One thing to mention, Ohlins USA does not stock this kit, so it might take a few weeks to get it to you ... from Sweden. But it's oh so worth it.

Same here, PSI is excellent. I'm running 600/650lb rates and they're still very streetable and comfy. The valving on these shocks is excellent. The off the shelf rates are 400/400lb and I'd imagine that would feel like a velvet carpet ride.

I have the RCE T1s now. This is on the wish list I'm looking for something that is a bit softer and can handle road imperfections better. I feel every rut in the road with the RCE T1s. I've had them before when I had my '06 and they didn't bother me. Maybe my taste in ride quality is changing as I'm getting older

If you keep the spring rates the same, and go from the T1's to the Ohlins, ride quality will improve. The DFV basically smooths out all of the tiny ruts and cracks and bumps you're talking about, while still maintaining sufficient rebound damping to control body motions and allow the car to always feel planted. I am a believer.

I have the RCE T1s now. This is on the wish list I'm looking for something that is a bit softer and can handle road imperfections better. I feel every rut in the road with the RCE T1s. I've had them before when I had my '06 and they didn't bother me. Maybe my taste in ride quality is changing as I'm getting older

 

OE rubber bushings in the '06?

OE rubber bushings in the '06?

 

My '06 had all the same suspension components except for the spec.B aluminum arms. I also replaced the OE tennisball bushing on my '06 with an AVO center aligned bushing, the '08 is OE.

Same tophats on both? Tires?

Same tophats on both? Tires?

 

Same tophats (spec.b) and similarly sized tires but different brand.

Same category of tire? I.e., sidewall stiffness?

How similarly sized ... even if it's only a little shorter (or stiffer) sidewall ... the ride quality can change exponentially with stiffer spring rates.

 

But seriously Ohlins seem to be like Mr. Clarkson's description of a turbo charger "Ohlins makes a shock, witchcraft happens, and you have a smooth ride".

 

I'm seriously impressed with what they've done. My legacy is now almost as easy to flick around as my civic was, and it weighs 1200 lbs more, and I'm on lighter springs. The ride quality is vastly superior to what I had in the civic ... granted I had a full set of poly bushings in the rear and was running 670lbf/560lbr spring rates (compared to 550lbf/450lbr in the legacy). Even @ -100lbs per corner I really think the ride quality comes down to the dampening. I absolutely loved my PICs on the civic for how they handled (great race coilovers) but on the street they were less than ideal. The Ohlins really live up to the Road part of "Road & Track" ... and they feel like they'll perform once I get out to flog them when racing season comes back around.

Same category of tire? I.e., sidewall stiffness?

 

What about tire PSI? USDM air vs pure nitrogen?

 

Rough price on these?

 

PM if you don't want to share publicly.

 

I told myself that I wouldn't put coilovers on this car, but it might happen at some point.

 

~$2800 to my door. That was including heavier springs, if you would be happy with Ohlins of the shelf rates (~400lb per corner, IIRC) it would be slightly cheaper.

Bumping this thread as it's the latest I can find on these.

 

Does anyone know the total suspension travel with the Ohlins road and tracks? It looks like the spring has 115mm of travel with recommended preload, but I can't find any confirmation that the shocks actually have that much travel.

 

I'm shopping these and KW's with different springs. Per RCE it looks like the KW shocks are capable of 160mm/135mm of travel. It would take swapping the springs out to get this travel, but the additional travel may trump the Ohlins more advanced valving with large potholes and surface changes.

 

 

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Some useful info here - thanks for contributing - I am looking at these myself after a heavily laden trip in the Legacy. We had 4 adults and a big(ish) dog and all our luggage for a 3 week holiday

 

 

The poor road surfaces had my wife in anguish with back pain over some of the harsher sections of road

 

 

I am currently on BC Racing BR coilovers probably about 7 or more years old - so past their best I guess...

 

 

Any further advice or experiences appreciated.

 

 

Thanks